


neo

by vhscassette



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-06
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2019-06-22 15:43:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15585213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vhscassette/pseuds/vhscassette
Summary: yamcha witnessed tien's last stand.[no afterlife au, slight canon diversion regarding attacks done but otherwise would end the same][takes place during tien's neo tri-beam/shinkikoho attack against cell]





	neo

A power level from a far away distance began to blare out of control.

 

Yamcha's heart plummeted to the floor.

 

"Tien, _Tien_ , god _damn_ it," Roshi cursed, balling his hands into fists as he fell to sit on the beach, trembling. Chiaotzu flew out of the front door and immediately stared off into the distance. Krillin sighed, wiped his clammy forehead, and sat on the front porch. Heat and humidity rolled onto the beach, taking up the space in Yamcha's lungs as he tried hard not to fall to his knees.

 

Tien began his final attack.

 

"What the hell do we do, Master?! He just- he's gonna- he's gonna fucking kill himself out there!" Krillin yelled to Roshi, Chiaotzu's sobs audible from where Yamcha was standing in the kitchen.

 

Three extremely high bursts of power occurred from an island somewhere. Chiaotzu whined in fear with each one.

 

"He's using his Neo Tri-Beam! It's meant for one and done attacks, not in succession like this!" Chiaotzu panicked, rapidly flying from one end of the island to the other as if trying to figure out how to save Tien. It served nothing but to make Krillin more anxious. Yamcha, body shaking, walked out to the front porch and stumbled off, falling into the sand with a groan of pain. Everyone whipped their heads to look at the sudden noise, Yamcha shivering as he laid face down into the sand. Krillin, sighing nervously, moved to help him up.

 

"Yamcha, buddy, come here. Get up," Krillin said gently, helping Yamcha get up from the dirty beach. Sand covered his ashen face, Yamcha's palms scraped and slowly flushing with red from the fall.

 

Five more power level blasts occurred from an island.

 

"Tien, what the fuck are you doing?" Yamcha whispered to no one, staring off to where the power level was coming from. "Please, stop this," he pleaded as his voice rose. Roshi stood up, his cane trembling, as he sighed. The power level blasted a total of seven more times in rapid succession before trickling down to twice, then once every few moments.

 

Suddenly, a chase began to occur between the two power levels, one ridiculously high level chasing a swift lower-powered one.

 

"We need to get out of here," Roshi said suddenly, staring at Krillin, Yamcha, and Chiaotzu intently. "Now. Get up."

 

Chiaotzu's already horrified eyes widened further. "B-but, Tien-" Chiaotzu said weakly, Roshi interrupting him with a loud, "No."

 

"We have no more time. By this point, Cell could detect our power levels if he gets too close. All of you, lower your levels to zero. We need to get to The Lookout," Roshi ordered, already beginning to drop his level to as low as possible.

 

"Tien, _no,_ " Yamcha's voice roughly cracked, clutching at his own sandy shirt, "please. Please. Stop. You can't die this way."

 

Krillin shook Yamcha gently. "Come on. Get up, Yamcha, get up," he said, his voice slowly becoming warbled with tears.

 

Yamcha grit his teeth before standing up in a rush, his eyes burning with fire and salvation. Without a word, he began sprinting towards the direction of the continuing chase between the two power levels. He nearly made the sprint to fly off into the sea before Roshi caught him by the leg, Yamcha nearly screaming in fear at the sudden feeling gripping his foot.

 

"I am _not_ gonna have _two_ students fall to this insect in one day. You get your ass down here and follow the others to the fuckin' Lookout, Yamcha," Roshi commanded, his voice thundering around the island. Yamcha's eyes were filled with utter horror and tears as he looked back into Roshi's determined eyes.

 

The chased power level dropped before suddenly bursting back up a total of four times, the chase abruptly ending. Yamcha nearly fell into the sea.

 

Roshi grabbed Yamcha before he could fall, and Krillin quickly motioned at Chiaotzu to follow before speeding off into the blue sky above. Yamcha couldn't stop crying, rubbing weakly at his eyes. His chest felt ripped apart at the seams. Tien wasn't going to return. He was going to die. They all were.

 

Suddenly, Yamcha felt a rough slap rush against his cheek. His mind blanked, ears ringing, as he found himself looking into Roshi's sunglasses.

 

"Listen to me, boy," Roshi growled into a command, "I'm doing this because I love you. I love all of you. You are my students, and _I am your god damned_ **_teacher._** You _will_ listen to me and you _will_ go up to The Lookout."

 

The message connected, Yamcha finding his body hard as lead and cold as ice as he nodded.

 

"Get the fuck out of here," Roshi said, haphazardly tossing Yamcha to the beach before he shakingly rushed inside. Yamcha's entire body shivered before freezing at a sudden barrage of energy flooding his senses.

 

 _Twenty-nine_ fucking blasts of energy in a row.

 

Yamcha, knowing that this was the end, rushed up to heaven to The Lookout. Turning behind him, his head numb, he found the sun was reflecting brightly off of the sea. To his right, though, Yamcha thought he saw a light even brighter shining in a rectangle into the land.

 

He reached his hand out, the wind impossibly rough against the mass that was his arm as he continued to fly upwards. The blue sky counteracted the vivid sunflower yellow that erupted from a point each time that power level erupted.

 

The light trailed around the outside of his fingers each time the attack flooded the area, and Yamcha wanted nothing more than to have one more day on Earth with Tien.

 

He found himself praying to God. Whoever that God was, if any, Yamcha didn't know and frankly didn't care. He _knew_ the only thing at the other end of the mirror was nothing but imperishable darkness. If absolutely _anything_ , though, Goku was their only hope now, their own little God in a gi, yet Yamcha felt on the inside that this God wouldn't be able to finish the job.

 

The blue sky darkened ever so slightly with the upcoming sunset. Heat and tears flooded Yamcha's eyes as he continued skyward.

 

Tien _knew_ he was nothing more than a god damned doll for this monster. He was nothing more than a toy to be ripped apart, spit into the sea, and sink in a slurry of his own blood, saltwater, and algae. The uselessness of it all made Yamcha want to stop flying and just fall straight down so the feeling would go away.

 

Tien was more than this.

 

He was so, so much more.

 

Yamcha rose, The Lookout officially in sight, as he moved his head back to stare at the glowing sunflower-yellow pulse that continuously came from far below.

 

He knew it would be the last time he saw him. Tien was a brave soul, an even lonelier fighter, and Yamcha thought for just a second that if they ever met again, he'd love him. He'd clutch his green gi in his hands, cuss him out in every language he thought he knew, punch him, cry into him, and love him. A goodbye message for the other side, perhaps.

 

Yamcha mouthed an apology before it was thrown away by the wind.


End file.
